Judgement daze

About 10 days ago, replying to questions from INDIA TODAY, Lalit Modi listed his plans for the IPL's future and said, "To keep interest we need equality at all costs." He was talking about shuffling players between teams, but the Dalai Lama and India's chief election commissioner would approve of

About 10 days ago, replying to questions from INDIA TODAY, Lalit Modi listed his plans for the IPL's future and said, "To keep interest we need equality at all costs." He was talking about shuffling players between teams, but the Dalai Lama and India's chief election commissioner would approve of the idea itself. Tears should well up in eyes across the species Homo ipl-ius. Except, this equality is less Dr. King and more George Orwell. The animals more equal than others in the IPL are team-owners, all higher up in the food chain and in fact, fairly responsible for much of the food in that chain.

How else do you explain what happened to Rajasthan Royals' Ravindra Jadeja? The guy growing into one of India's most valuable all-rounders in the short game is spending this IPL season at home in Jamnagar. He is banned because halfway during Season 2 as he played for the Royals, he negotiated with Mumbai Indians. It has cost him IPL wages of Rs 40 lakh and earned the tag of turncoat.

Rajasthan Royals CEO Sean Morris announced grandiosely that the Royals "have got really strong values... lot of loyalty and integrity within the team and the squad". Gosh, stirring words. Then Morris patronised, "We brought him on as a player hopefully for the benefit of Indian cricket. We firmly believe in investing in young Indian players." So sweet. But it is not as if the Royals discovered Jadeja cleaning tanks at a refinery near Jamnagar. The fellow belonged to the Indian team that won the under-19 World Cup in 2008; he's played in two of them.

Wonder what Shane Warne thinks. In 2008, Warne would grab anyone in his radius and introduce Jadeja to them as the "Rock Star". Surely Warnie knows what happens to twentysomethings rock stars who hit fat pay cheques and dazzling company. Of course Jadeja was being naughty but what about the Mumbai Indians? Weren't they involved in a 'breach of operational rules' too by talking to Jadeja?

The player who breaks the rules gets banned but the team that entertains discussions involving an exchange of contracts is only 'warned'. Because Jadeja approached them first. So what? It's an extremely uneven judgement.

The player has been penalised Rs 40 lakh from a total of Rs 55 lakh he could have earned on BCCI and IPL contracts in a year. The team, first bought for $111.9 million, doesn't even have to reach into its wallet for entering discussions with him.

The Mumbai Indians, an adjunct of a multi-billion dollar business enterprise, were given a second chance after flouting the rules because Jadeja tempted them. The kid who tempted the giants, this son of a private security firm watchman and nurse, has lost just over 70 per cent of his annual match fees.

Doesn't look like equality at any cost.

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